CEA estimates that about 140,000 people attended CES, and the state of the industry is showing strength. Gary Shapiro predicts that consumer electronics spending will show a 6% increase for 2010, to $180 billion, and will rise an additional 3% this year, to more than $186 billion. The predominant themes this year were tablets, apps, 3D, 4G, gestural interfaces, and ‘smart’ connected devices. We saw a great deal in terms of sharing content across multiple CE platforms – and the high-speed networks required to do so. ETC will have a post show analysis with details of the major themes and trends available by next week.

While media convergence and related CE devices/services take center stage at CES, Hollywood is taking important steps toward addressing the digital production and distribution of media content. The Hollywood tech community – under leadership of the major studios and the ETC@USC – published its Interoperable Master Format (IMF) in 2010, a proposed voluntary specification designed to serve as a standard digital distribution master. Recently, SMPTE announced the creation of an IMF working group to move forward with standardizing the format. While we were covering the increasingly expanded array of connected, over-the-top, CE devices and platforms featured at CES, The Hollywood Reporter was addressing the relevance of IMF.

Winners of this year’s CNET Best of CES Awards were announced Saturday morning in the lobby of South Hall. ‘Best of Show’ went to Motorola’s Android-based XOOM tablet, one in a growing number of tablets targeting the burgeoning iPad market. This year’s ‘People’s Voice Award’ went to the Razer Switchblade – an Intel Atom-based concept design to bring PC gaming to a portable form factor. Razer has taken the familiar keyboard and redesigned it as a tool for mobile gaming controls.

Home Server Technologies Inc. (HSTi) showcased an innovative new technology called Wireless Media Stick, a simple and affordable ($119) product that allows media connectivity between mobile devices, TVs, DVD players and other devices. What’s especially interesting about the technology is that you can also stream on-the-go; the Wireless Media Stick app is downloadable for smartphones and by taking the Stick to any location you can directly stream data from a mobile device to any TV, computer or stereo that is USB playback compatible.

Sensio has announced a 3D VOD channel available for network streaming customers and VOD providers. Sensio has also announced increased efforts at enabling 3D console gaming by providing a software kit to developers that will encode the 3D game output into a number of 3D formats. Additionally, Sensio Autodetect technology can detect and display a wide range of 3D formats.

KDDI R&D demonstrated a proof-of-concept implementation of a system that will allow consumers to determine and change their vantage point and control their 3D viewing experience during a live broadcast. Free Viewpoint 3D Video requires a minimum of four 2D camera positions, and four 2D video feeds, to work. They plan to run a test over the KDDI broadcast system in about six months.

Samsung shows its latest 3D Blu-ray players and prescription-ready 3D active glasses. The Blu-ray product line also offers Samsung Smart Hub via integrated wireless and Smart Blu-ray features. The SSG-3700CR glasses weigh just under an ounce. Viewers who wear eyeglasses can order special prescription lenses that attach to the SSG-3700CR.

Samsung is showing a prototype of an ultra-thin 75-inch Full HD 3D LED TV, playing stunning 1080p footage. The display is Internet-enabled, supports 3D, and includes a touchscreen remote. Samsung also explained it is power efficient since it features LED backlighting.

Technicolor presented an overview of their 3D quality control certification process and criteria at CES. The 3D certification program, Certifi3D, launched in December. Their Certification chart, “a 15-point quality checklist to identify common errors in production that result in suboptimal 3D content,” is available at www.technicolor.com.

Walt Husak and co-workers showed and discussed some full resolution 3D test material that they shot, in a private room within the Dolby booth. Dolby may show this material to the various industry bodies currently discussing development of a 3D standard test reel, in the hope that it will accelerate the process.